Another Cravath Bonus Match And Another Complaint About Benefits
Bonuses may be nice, but associates are feeling the pinch of cuts to other benefits.
Bonus season 2017 has only been on a few days and already some patterns have emerged. Most Biglaw firms — well, at least the ones that have announced bonuses so far — have matched the scale established by Cravath. That isn’t too surprising; they have become the established compensation leader, both in terms of yearly bonuses and base compensation.
Yesterday, Proskauer Rose announced they are matching the industry standard for end-of-the-year bonuses, to be paid on December 22nd.
Class of 2017 — $15,000 (pro-rated)
Class of 2016 — $15,000
Class of 2015 — $25,000
Class of 2014 — $50,000
Class of 2013 — $65,000
Class of 2012 — $80,000
Class of 2011 — $90,000
Class of 2010 — $100,000
Class of 2009 — $100,000
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The other trend we are noticing? That the bonuses may be nice, but associates are feeling the pinch of cuts to other benefits. From a Proskauer tipster:
The bonus is nice, but doesn’t make anyone feel better about the firm’s new, terrible, health insurance policy that is functionally a significant pay cut for any associate with health issues.
Remember, if your firm is similarly cutting back on health care benefits shoot ATL a line — we are organizing a comprehensive listing of health care benefits.
So, Proskauer attorneys, how do you feel about the bonuses and your health insurance? Feel free to sound off by email, by text message (646-820-8477), or by tweet (@ATLblog). A fun or insightful response — we’ll keep you anonymous — could find its way into an update to this story.
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What about the bonuses everywhere else? Please help us help you when it comes to bonus news at other firms. As soon as your firm’s bonus memo comes out, please email it to us (subject line: “[Firm Name] Bonus”) or text (646-820-8477), or tweet (@ATLblog). We always keep our sources anonymous — and that includes our sources for bonus stories. There’s no need to send the memo using your firm email account; your personal email account is fine. Please be sure to include the memo as proof; we like to post complete bonus memos as a service to our readers. You can take a photo of the memo and attach as a picture if you are worried about metadata in a PDF or Word file. Thanks for your help.
Do you like to be in the know? Do you love gossiping with friends and co-workers over the latest bonus news? Then you simply must sign up for ATL’s Bonus Alerts. It’s easy, just scroll down and enter your email address in the box below this post. If you previously signed up for the bonus alerts, you don’t need to do anything. You’ll receive an email notification within minutes of each bonus announcement that we publish. Thanks!
Read the full memo on the next page.
Kathryn Rubino is an editor at Above the Law. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).
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